Crossword clues for dramatic
dramatic
- Thrilling in effect
- Theatrical drummer discontented with violin concerto's introduction
- Hardly comedic
- Gripping (tale)
- Like many a rescue
- Like a pause that gets one's attention
- Highly theatrical
- Given to theatrics
- Exciting and action-packed (tale)
- ___ Chipmunk (viral video starring a serious-looking rodent)
- Theatrical device
- Striking in effect
- Showy and sudden
- Striking in appearance
- Like Racine's works
- Vivid; striking
- Like Chayefsky's works
- Marked rise in river - a lot of risk about that
- Sudden and striking
- Striking a flowing boundary up in Durham - it leads to century
- People are keen take part in such a society
- Drive Nancy’s friend around at 100? That’s impressive
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
dramatic
adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a dramatic announcement (=sudden and important)
▪ The dramatic announcement came after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
a dramatic contrast (=great and surprising)
▪ Alaska is a land of dramatic contrast.
a dramatic event (=very exciting)
▪ The dramatic events will be brought to you live on BBC.
a dramatic gesture
▪ In politics, dramatic gestures are sometimes necessary.
a dramatic improvement (=very big and quick)
▪ With the new treatment we saw a dramatic improvement in his condition.
a dramatic incident (=unexpected and exciting)
▪ Viewers watched the dramatic incident on the television news.
a dramatic pause (=one that has a dramatic effect)
▪ In the dramatic pause before she replied, you could feel the tension in the room.
a dramatic rescue
▪ A woman is in hospital following a dramatic rescue from her blazing flat.
a dramatic shift (=a big and sudden change)
▪ Increased spending on the armed forces marks a dramatic shift in priorities.
a dramatic/drastic reduction (=surprisingly large)
▪ The most immediate effect of retirement is a dramatic reduction in living standards.
a marked/dramatic difference (=very noticeable)
▪ There was a marked difference between the two sets of results.
a sharp/dramatic/marked drop in sth
▪ The results showed a sharp drop in profits.
a thrilling/dramatic/exciting climax
▪ In this scene, the play reaches its dramatic climax.
dramatic irony
dramatic plunge
▪ a dramatic plunge in house prices
dramatic tension (=the tension you feel when you are not sure quite what will happen in a story)
▪ This uncertainty adds to the film’s dramatic tension.
dramatic (=very big and sudden)
▪ Taking the new drug had a dramatic effect on his health.
dramatic (=extremely fast, and by a large amount)
▪ The last three years have seen a dramatic decline in the number of tigers in the area.
dramatic (=great and sudden)
▪ The meter showed a dramatic rise in the level of radioactivity.
dramatic (=unusual and impressive)
▪ Discover the dramatic scenery of the Yorkshire Dales on a guided walk.
dramatic/drastic/radical (=very big, especially in way that is surprising)
▪ The Industrial Revolution was a period of dramatic change.
dramatic/sharp (=large and sudden)
▪ What has led to this dramatic increase in prices?
dramatic/sudden/complete reversal
▪ a dramatic reversal in population decline
take a dramatic/fresh/different etc turn
▪ From then on, our fortunes took a downward turn.
▪ My career had already taken a new turn.
▪ The President was stunned by the sudden turn of events.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
as
▪ Almost as dramatic as the financial scale of the mess is the growing political fallout.
▪ Pack it tight, add basketball footage as dramatic as it is trite, and throw it into the Hollywood Plot Machine.
▪ The effect of this change has not been as dramatic as had been feared.
▪ But just as dramatic and, maybe, just as natural.
▪ The demise of the Longhorn, however, was as dramatic and sudden as its success.
▪ The politics of the 1950s and 1960s were not as dramatic as those of the 1930s.
▪ Turlis's performances were not always as dramatic as that, of course.
▪ At the same time the decline of the small manufacturing firm has been just as dramatic.
less
▪ However in practice the change has been less dramatic than it first appears, for two reasons.
▪ Not less dramatic, but less gory.
▪ There may be other, less dramatic pressures.
▪ If additions to suppliers' workforces had been included in the statistics, the downsizings would have been much less dramatic.
▪ The reality of Citrine's position was somewhat less dramatic than was sometimes imagined by contemporaries.
▪ But the results of their work were far less dramatic.
▪ Methods of punishment had become less dramatic, but the principle of suffering remained constant.
▪ Consequently, their improvements in most risk areas were less dramatic.
more
▪ The fact is, for a lot less money and pain she could have achieved a far more dramatic improvement in her appearance.
▪ But genetic counseling can have more dramatic results.
▪ The announcement of the executive election results minutes later was altogether more dramatic.
▪ How other institutions will search you out, because publishing an exceptional paper from an unexpected source is more dramatic.
▪ What was missing from the speech was more dramatic than what was in.
▪ She would simply arrive by different, more dramatic means.
▪ Nowhere is this shift of behaviour more dramatic than in courting rituals.
▪ By contrast, more dramatic effects are found in people treated with anti-AIDS drugs that attack the virus directly.
most
▪ In the most dramatic result of the night, the Liberal Democrats beat him in Bath by 3,768 votes.
▪ The most dramatic case was an attorney at the height of workaholism.
▪ When kings were at loggerheads with their clergy, which was not their usual relationship, morality constituted the most dramatic battleground.
▪ Off camera Gore continued to drive the most dramatic challenge to the legitimacy of a presidential election in the country's history.
▪ This political sea change coincided with the most dramatic incident to have occurred on the Hinkley Point site since it started operation.
▪ But the most dramatic event was probably the 4-minute landing.
▪ Indeed the most dramatic example of mass extinction known to biology has been caused by the introduction of an alien species.
▪ The rivers give some of the most dramatic testimony to the lack of rain and snow.
so
▪ Did the choice of alternatives have to be so narrow, so dramatic?
▪ I have a friend who tells a story similar to that of the lost boy, though not nearly so dramatic.
▪ Nothing so dramatic as Nora Fanshawe had suggested need have happened.
▪ It had been so dramatic and difficult.
very
▪ Now you may be thinking that these options sound very dramatic and limited in the context of social chit-chat.
▪ That's where those images of Picasso were very poignant. Very dramatic, yes.
▪ It was moving, stark and very dramatic.
▪ This is again a very dramatic, very physical reading of the score.
▪ Seen through the water the scene can look very dramatic and gives the impression of great depth to the water volume.
▪ Gott says the Bentley will have a very dramatic styling that will surprise many people.
▪ It became a last stand, all very dramatic.
▪ In most lives, such highly ritualistic utterances as declarations are rare and very dramatic.
■ NOUN
action
▪ Over the years, however, such dramatic action proved to be the exception rather than the rule.
▪ Ignoring lawful procedures, Chun and his coconspirators took their dramatic actions before obtaining the approval of President Choi.
▪ It is a shared ritual quickened by dramatic action.
▪ It is one of the most dramatic action pictures in golf.
▪ The solution is to make a dramatic action here.
▪ Concentration on character may be argued to allow critical misconstruction about how the plays' dramatic action works.
▪ The real difference is observable in the breakdown of scenes and the manner in which Britten chooses to deploy the dramatic action.
change
▪ They are deeply concerned about the scientists' inability to explain the dramatic changes they see in nature.
▪ The case touches upon decades of tradition in Dubuque, and dramatic changes affecting health care nationwide.
▪ Elizabeth had been unprepared for such a dramatic change.
▪ But this Congress, led by tough-minded small-businesspeople, had the courage to make dramatic changes.
▪ Anyone who has kept track of developments in this field would easily notice a dramatic change in the government's approach.
▪ There has been a dramatic change in the last 10 years.
▪ A more dramatic change for the youngest family member came in the new year.
▪ He added that she couldn't achieve dramatic change alone.
decline
▪ In fact, it has led to a dramatic decline in votes for the two main parties, Likud and Labour.
▪ Experts call the insecticides a major advance and say Phoenix-area residents can expect a dramatic decline in the whitefly population this fall.
▪ Recent opinion polls had shown a dramatic decline in public support for the union, as it had become identified with government policy.
▪ That increase ended a dramatic decline from 2. 7 million metric tons in May 1994.
▪ This recorded a dramatic decline in the total number of poor, largely due to the implementation of the Beveridge Report in 1948.
difference
▪ Secondly, the results were consistent, with no dramatic difference from place to place at any particular time.
▪ Parents can make a dramatic difference in how children use their wonderfully different natural abilities.
▪ Accepting this science can make a dramatic difference in millions of lives.
▪ Since taking this advice, she has noticed a dramatic difference in her energy levels, and all the symptoms have disappeared.
▪ For a small percentage of children, the Feingold diet makes a dramatic difference.
▪ Just why there was such a dramatic difference in experiences with the same species really baffled me.
drop
▪ It had an immediate effect, causing a long term, and dramatic drop in the Club's profits.
▪ Could these factors contribute to a dramatic drop in the self-esteem of schoolgirls?
effect
▪ This has a dramatic effect on the information management strategy of the organisation.
▪ By contrast, more dramatic effects are found in people treated with anti-AIDS drugs that attack the virus directly.
▪ This is sometimes done at discotheques, and it produces some dramatic effects.
▪ They are both interesting books because they tell interesting stories, and are arranged to dramatic effect in interesting ways.
▪ The black and cream colour scheme in this bedroom from Smallbone creates a dramatic effect.
▪ That will have a dramatic effect across the country as the money can be spent on all sorts of arts projects.
▪ These will look imposing and create a dramatic effect with shadows.
event
▪ At the Kleiber household in Poplar, these dramatic events passed unnoticed: Ernest and Rosie had more important matters in mind.
▪ As is often the case with dissertations, mine dealt with dramatic events but was abstract, academic, and lifeless.
▪ This is the backcloth to the dramatic events that were soon to follow.
▪ But the most dramatic event was probably the 4-minute landing.
▪ I predicted that a dramatic event would soon strike at the heart of the Royal Family.
▪ For Sonny, those dramatic events are less than a blur.
▪ The dramatic events of Black Wednesday leave little chance of avoiding a quick revival of inflationary pressure.
▪ Pollutions are rarely dramatic events in themselves, but are often more striking in their consequences.
example
▪ One of the most dramatic examples of this is the sing-song voice adults use when they talk to babies.
▪ Television generally simplifies complex issues by using specific and dramatic examples to explain a topic.
▪ A dramatic example of this is the publicity given to the secret annexes to the 1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact.
▪ Iomega is a dramatic example of how small investors can work together.
▪ Indeed the most dramatic example of mass extinction known to biology has been caused by the introduction of an alien species.
▪ In the most dramatic example, Gov.
▪ Various branches of the electronics industry provide equally dramatic examples.
▪ Certainly there are some dramatic examples.
fall
▪ The most striking change between 1975 and 1988 has been the dramatic fall in youth employment from 60% to 20%.
▪ Most domestic items, particularly those made of wood show a dramatic fall after the mid-seventeenth century.
▪ Perhaps the most dramatic fall from grace was the case of Hu Yaobang.
form
▪ Still, one dramatic form of this migration can be approximately documented.
▪ Tragicomedy gives the disjunction of the subjective and objective visions of the human situation dramatic form.
▪ Instead they need to find out the rhythms of speech which make the music of the verse work in dramatic form.
▪ This shift was evidenced in a highly dramatic form in the spontaneous mass uprising in Santo Domingo in 1965.
▪ In other dramatic forms this is the job of the writer, director and actors.
▪ The line of dramatic form running from primitive arrow dance to Pinero is worth bearing in mind.
▪ In reality, it would probably be both, but in dramatic form, some emotional focus would be sought.
▪ In dramatic form they suggested: As some industries become redundant others will be required to expand.
gesture
▪ In a dramatic gesture, Diana pulled out of attending after the split was announced.
▪ He knew, says Menotti a little wryly, that it was time for a dramatic gesture.
▪ It seemed -the least he could do - to deny himself the dramatic gesture, to humiliate himself.
growth
▪ It is in this context that the dramatic growth of cooperation assumes its full import.
▪ Such dramatic growth has given rise to a whole new vocabulary.
▪ The fact is that urban Britain faced not a period of standstill but of dramatic growth and reordering.
▪ The recent dramatic growth of urban areas has been one powerful catalyst for change.
impact
▪ Such a measure would have a dramatic impact.
▪ The rookie out of Colorado has a dramatic impact on the offense when he comes into the game.
▪ The Ashby Report did not make a dramatic impact upon the Eastern District, but it was important none the less.
▪ Access to supercomputers, in particular, has had a dramatic impact on scientific endeavors.
▪ Their secretion seems to be not food but a volatile potion that has a dramatic impact upon the ants' behaviour.
▪ The most dramatic impact will be on First Interstate employees.
▪ In women's and feminist studies, professionalism can have a more dramatic impact.
▪ Sharp colour and defined curls create dramatic impact For a classic fifties look short hair is combed back from the face.
improvement
▪ With the spring, there was a dramatic improvement in the quality of life.
▪ In recent years, dramatic improvements have been made in methods of tracking and managing public opinion.
▪ The report shows that there have been dramatic improvements in some areas in the past 10 years.
▪ He showed dramatic improvement from his junior year to his senior year.
▪ Finally hopes for a dramatic improvement in trade with Commonwealth members were not realized.
▪ By that evening there was dramatic improvement.
▪ This single speaker unit is designed to add to an existing hi fi setup to provide a dramatic improvement in bass reproduction.
▪ A trial of colchicine, which yields dramatic improvement, supports the diagnosis of gout.
increase
▪ He discovered that diffusing the transmitted light resulted in a dramatic increase in the resolution of such cryptic features.
▪ These dramatic increases in the fourth and seventh grades reflect the two milestones in school when work expectations change.
▪ Other dangers are dramatic increases and decreases in blood pressure, paranoia and psychosis.
▪ They joined the National Literacy Campaign, an enormously successful initiative, which achieved a dramatic increase in literacy rates.
▪ Clinton wants dramatic increases in college aid.
▪ Of course this liberal reform would mean a dramatic increase in the cost of the probation service.
▪ There also has been a dramatic increase in reported attacks on livestock, according to the Department of Fish and Game.
performance
▪ In collaboration with Rosy Martin she staged possible family pictures in a dramatic performance of concealed relationships and submerged emotion.
▪ Is his dramatic performance appropriate parody or merely amateurish?
▪ Hers is a compelling and intensely dramatic performance.
▪ The most dramatic performance of the serving staff came with the dessert.
▪ The Mussorgsky fill-up brings a more sharply dramatic performance.
▪ Signal systems Consider another case: that of dramatic performance.
▪ You could also go to local amateur dramatic performances.
▪ We also realised that there was insufficient classroom time for the testing of children individually in dramatic performance.
reduction
▪ Even more importantly, it can achieve dramatic reductions in the amount of energy used.
▪ The main advantage of the Flydaw dramatic reduction in the capital cost of construction.
▪ High seed rates cause a dramatic reduction in anchorage strength because the spread of the structural roots is restricted.
▪ This was discussed in chapter 3, but an example will illustrate the often dramatic reduction in manufacturing jobs in rural areas.
▪ In future, the hon. Gentleman should acknowledge the dramatic reduction in unemployment in his constituency during this Parliament.
▪ The report was commissioned from scientists in five countries in order to assess the impact of dramatic reductions in carbon emissions.
▪ Mr. Higgins My right hon. Friend is to be congratulated on the dramatic reduction in the inflation rate.
result
▪ In the most dramatic result of the night, the Liberal Democrats beat him in Bath by 3,768 votes.
▪ But genetic counseling can have more dramatic results.
▪ Using the detailed knowledge of employees at all levels, dramatic results were obtained.
▪ In the Third World, however, the application of a little force or a little money could have dramatic results.
▪ The list below gives fifteen of the commonest, though some achieve more dramatic results than others.
▪ But it is all of them working together in a systematic way that produces the dramatic results companies really want.
▪ This scheme launched enterprises with dramatic results, instead of doling out aid to passive clients.
reversal
▪ A number of such dramatic reversals are contained in this book.
rise
▪ There's been a dramatic rise in share prices.
▪ Private agencies that supply nurse's aides report a dramatic rise in requests from patients in hospital in the past few years.
▪ However, other demutualisation shares, such as Alliance &038; Leicester and Northern Rock, have not shown a particularly dramatic rise.
▪ This has meant a dramatic rise in food prices which have resulted in families being forced into debt.
▪ The increased use of computers has led to a dramatic rise in the production of paper records.
▪ And the dramatic rise in popularity of some makes is sensational - such as Nissan, whose sales increase is more than 3,000 percent.
▪ But sales of mopeds for the year to date show the most dramatic rise.
scenery
▪ For the ocean may provide dramatic scenery but it does not, in itself, belong centre-stage.
▪ It has good beaches, dramatic scenery and has even been given the royal nod.
▪ It is an island of contrasts with superb climate and dramatic scenery.
▪ The place has always attracted writers and artists and lovers of strange and dramatic scenery.
shift
▪ After 1715 we see a sudden and dramatic shift in the leadership of both parties.
▪ The literature of the time provides ample evidence of a dramatic shift in public attitudes.
▪ We need to reduce the demand for travel and see a dramatic shift towards public transport, cycling and walking.
▪ Environmental policy subsequently underwent dramatic shifts in both stride and direction.
▪ The most dramatic shift is between the years 1971 and 1978.
▪ There has been a dramatic shift of population since the 1950s: hunting-and-fishing settlements gave way to small towns.
▪ However, subsequent independent surveys of actual ballots indicated a dramatic shift, with Mr Fujimori nearing a first-round victory.
tension
▪ To demonstrate dramatic tension. 3.
▪ This should not defuse the dramatic tension.
▪ The key to this lies in dramatic tension.
▪ Playing the game is not in itself drama, though a great deal of dramatic tension arises when it is well played.
▪ We can create dramatic tension by building up expectations.
▪ This increases the urgency of the task, and raises dramatic tension.
▪ The teacher should plan carefully first to create dramatic tension, and then to use it productively.
turn
▪ And a late drop goal from Kiwi stand-off Henry Paul completed a dramatic turn-around.
▪ This represents a dramatic turn of events in presidential politics.
▪ El Cid's future seemed anything but happy, yet events were to take a dramatic turn in the months ahead.
▪ The composer's cue was clear: Britten even gets his music out of the way at each dramatic turn.
▪ The more data which can be made public, the less likely there will be a dramatic turn in sentiment.
way
▪ We know that our own legal structure constantly violates integrity in this less dramatic way.
▪ The incident had simply been a regrettably dramatic way to begin his first week home from Ireland.
▪ Others may adopt because it is a dramatic way of rejecting what their family and society stand for.
▪ There is evidence from other fields as well that mind can affect the body in dramatic ways.
▪ The improvements have come not in a dramatic way but week by week over a number of months.
▪ Conflict may be the most dramatic way to tell a story.
▪ But the Sky Blues found a dramatic way back into the match when Hartson became the hero.
▪ Shame they couldn't have stumbled upon a more dramatic way of doing it.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ "Voice of the Heart" is a dramatic story of two women that sweeps from New York to Europe and back again.
▪ a collection of Shakespeare's dramatic works
▪ Firemen carried out a dramatic rescue of the boy trapped in the burning house.
▪ Rosa made a dramatic entrance into the room, wearing a tiny red dress.
▪ Rumpole produced the evidence with a dramatic flourish.
▪ She raised her hands in a dramatic gesture of despair.
▪ Stop being so dramatic. It's embarrassing.
▪ the dramatic changes that took place in Eastern Europe
▪ The movie starts with a dramatic car chase across the desert.
▪ There has been a dramatic increase in homelessness over the past few years.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ The report shows that there have been dramatic improvements in some areas in the past 10 years.
▪ The rivers give some of the most dramatic testimony to the lack of rain and snow.
▪ There are sudden, dramatic leaps in small children's learning, interspersed with long fallow periods when nothing seems to happen.
▪ There may be other, less dramatic pressures.
▪ Way too contrived and gooey for most grown-ups, it might well delight youngsters, especially its dramatic underwater sequences.
▪ What they hadn't bargained for was a sudden and dramatic change in the weather.
▪ With this dramatic and disorienting shift in the way corporations structure themselves comes a change in business Ianguage.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Dramatic
Dramatic \Dra*mat"ic\ (dr[.a]*m[a^]t"[i^]k), Dramatical \Dra*mat"ic*al\ (dr[.a]*m[a^]t"[i^]*kal), a. [Gr. dramatiko`s, fr. dra^ma: cf. F. dramatique.] Of or pertaining to the drama; as, dramatic arts. [WordNet sense 3]
2. suitable to or characteristic of or having the qualities of, a drama; theatrical; as, a dramatic entrance in a swirling cape; a dramatic rescue at sea. Opposite of undramatic. [WordNet sense 1] [Narrower terms: melodramatic; awe-inspiring, spectacular]
The emperor . . . performed his part with much
dramatic effect.
--Motley.
3. striking in appearance or effect; vivid; having a thrilling effect; as, a dramatic sunset; a dramatic pause.
Syn: spectacular, striking.
4. (Music) marked by power and expressiveness and a histrionic or theatrical style; -- of a singer or singing voice; as, a dramatic tenor; a dramatic soprano. Contrasted to lyric. [WordNet sense 4]
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
dramatic
1580s, from Late Latin dramaticus, from Greek dramatikos "pertaining to plays," from drama (genitive dramatos; see drama). Meaning "full of action and striking display, fit for a drama" is from 1725. Dramatic irony is recorded from 1907. Related: Dramatical; dramatically.
Wiktionary
dramatic
a. 1 Of or relating to the drama. 2 Striking in appearance or effect.
WordNet
dramatic
adj. suitable to or characteristic of drama; "a dramatic entrance in a swirling cape"; "a dramatic rescue at sea" [ant: undramatic]
sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect; "a dramatic sunset"; "a dramatic pause"; "a spectacular display of northern lights"; "it was a spectacular play"; "his striking good looks always created a sensation" [syn: spectacular, striking]
pertaining to or characteristic of drama; "dramatic arts"
used of a singer or singing voice that is marked by power and expressiveness and a histrionic or theatrical style; "a dramatic tenor"; "a dramatic soprano" [ant: lyric]
Wikipedia
Dramatic
Dramatic may refer to:
- Drama, a literary form involving parts for actors
- Dramatic, a voice type classification in European classical music, describing a specific vocal weight and range at the lower end of a given voice part
- Dramatic soprano, a strong voice which can be heard over an orchestra
- Dramatic (album), an album by Casiopea
- The Dramatics, 1960s American soul music vocal group
- Dramatic Chipmunk, 2004 internet phenomenon
Dramatic (album)
DRAMATIC is the 24th album by the jazz fusion group Casiopea recorded and released in 1993. It is also an album which marks the introduction of a new Casiopea Member, Noriaki Kumagai, who replaced Masaaki Hiyama on drums due to his Medical problems caused by smoking, and, this also marks Casiopea's Return to Alfa Records. This album has a song, "Shocking Function", which includes Former T-Square Member, Kiyohiko Senba, on percussion.
Usage examples of "dramatic".
Saint stood unflinchingly, Amity clinging aghast to his arm, Warlock lifted the record and went through the dramatic gesture of smashing it against the corner of the phonograph.
Even Hollywood scriptwriters and apolitical actors were fascinated by the dramatic pace and structure of the hearings.
Perhaps it was the sudden, dramatic change from agonising anxiety to peace and security which had been too much for Ellen--yes, that was what was the matter with her, that and the universal excitement about these Avenger murders, which were shaking the nerves of all London.
That seemed dramatic to Bowles, but she said nothing, preferring to hear his version of this.
From being just an ordinary star Briareus Delta became in the space of two dramatic seconds the most brilliant and beautiful sight in the whole sky.
Casti had neither a fine style, nor a knowledge of dramatic requirements, as appears from two or three comic operas composed by him, in which the reader will find nothing but foolish buffooneries badly put together.
Caccini, and these, we may take it, were shared by the other members of the camerata who were engaged in the pursuit of a method of direct, eloquent, dramatic solo expression.
Colt Peacemaker except a larger, more dramatic version of my own cerebrovascular accident?
After that truly dramatic scene, during which I could guess that the denouement of the play was near at hand, I went to my charming countess, taking care to change my gondola three times--a necessary precaution to baffle spies.
Pan Xo, despondent over the loss of his illicit lover to the arms of another man, took his own life by slashing open his own veins, but not before dispatching his lover and her dallier in a more, shall we say, dramatic fashion.
The lodge was perched at the edge of a dramatic bluff, and in the canyon below were rapids where the oddly chalk-colored waters of the River Dob raged and rumbled over enormous boulders.
By the logical subtleties of her scholastic theologians, by the persuasive eloquence of her popular preachers, by the frantic ravings of her fanatic devotees, by the parading proclamation of her innumerable pretended miracles, by the imposing ceremonies of her dramatic ritual, almost visibly opening heaven and hell to the over awed congregation, by her wonder working use of the relics of martyrs and saints to exorcise demons from the possessed and to heal the sick, and by her anathemas against all who were supposed to be hostile to her formulas, she infused the ideas of her doctrinal system into the intellect, heart, and fancy of the common people, and nourished the collateral horrors, until every wave of her wand convulsed the world.
Dealing with aliens seemed relatively straightforward compared with dealing with missing illegal immigrants, dodgy restaurant owners, learning to drive surrounded by a mob of delinquents and appearing in a jinxed dramatic production.
Only in dramatic literature do we find the devastating tradition of blank verse still lingering, giving factitious prestige to the platitudes of dullards, and robbing the dramatic style of the genuine poet of its full natural endowment of variety, force and simplicity.
My guess is that at the very beginning of his teaching career he realized that he would have to compensate in some very definite, dramatic way for the physical inadequacies of his person -- his extreme nearsightedness, his dwarfism making him laughable, vulnerable.